Turkish packaging manufacturer Barem Ambalaj (BARMA.IS) has filed for court protection from creditors, the company has announced.

An ambitious €200mn paper factory expansion at its Konya plant and severe macroeconomic headwinds severely constrained its cash flow, Barem said.

In response to the company’s application for the court protection, known as concordato in Turkey, the Izmir 1st civil court of first instance granted a three-month temporary moratorium.

The enterprise’s core packaging plants in Izmir, Gaziantep and Karaman continue production while operations at the Konya Eregli paper mill have been temporarily halted.

Barem Ambalaj was listed on Borsa Istanbul in 2022.

On July 31, Borsa Istanbul downgraded Barem to the Watchlist (Gozalti) Market, where 17 companies are currently traded, from the BIST Stars market.

On July 27, IntelliNews reported that companies in the queue for permission to hold an initial public offering (IPO) at Borsa Istanbul are among those filing for bankruptcy protection. There are four such companies. Infinia Advanced Elektronik, Pakun, Turk Ambalaj and Geosis Powertrain, have received concordato rulings ahead of any opening they might receive to sell their shares in the market.

Turk Oluklu Mukavva, or Turk Ambalaj, is a unit of Battal Holding, which also owns Turk Ilac (TRILC). 

As of July 25, 134 companies were in the IPO queue. 

On July 19, this publication reported that the list of defaulters already traded on Borsa Istanbul was also lengthening.